1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a three-dimensional graphic user interface, and an apparatus and method of providing the same. In particular, the present invention relates to a three-dimensional graphic user interface that can increase visual effects and intuitively represent importance of information, and an apparatus and method of providing the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, digital apparatuses use a graphic user interface (GUI) in order to allow convenient use and to rapidly and intuitively transfer information to a user. The user moves a pointer using a pointing device, such as a keypad, a keyboard, or a mouse, and selects an object indicated by the pointer, thereby instructing a desired operation to the digital apparatuses.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a GUI that is supported by a related art personal computer (PC) operating system.
As shown in FIG. 1, the related art user interfaces (UI) are two-dimensional, planar, and static UIs. Accordingly, since the forms of information to be displayed by the UIs are document-oriented, it is not enough to satisfy sensitivity of a user, and there is a limit to visually and effectively provide information. In addition, objects to be provided by the related art GUIs include three-dimensional objects, but these three-dimensional objects do not vary from a two-dimensional concept. For this reason, the objects are three-dimensionally viewed, but the merits of the three-dimensional objects are not utilized in view of a method of using the objects.
The GUI of the PC operating system is not suitable for all digital apparatuses. For example, in the case of an apparatus that provides multimedia contents, the existing UIs have limits on their ability to satisfy the sensitivity of the user and to provide entertainment functions. In order to solve the above problems, various techniques (for example, a technique disclosed in Korean Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-061224, entitled “Method of Displaying Menu Picture of Video Apparatus”) have been suggested, but the above problems have not been solved yet.